The Utilization of U.S. male labor, 1975-1992: Estimates of foregone work hours

The percentage of working-age men in the United States who were fully active in the labor market decreased over the 1975-1992 period ("fully active" means working 2080 hours in a year). Similarly, the extent to which men were less than fully active increased. When one considers the number of hours by which men fell short of the 2080 norm in 1992, it was as if 20 percent of them did not work at all in that year, up from 18 percent in 1975. However, because the least-productive workers were the ones most likely to be less than fully active and the most-productive were the ones least likely to be less than fully active, total productivity-weighted work hours did not fall by this large an amount. If men failed to work 2080 hours in a year, most likely it was because they did not work at all; men most often did not work at all because they could find no jobs. Data were from Current Population Surveys.

Recent trends in U.S. male work and wage patterns: An overview

This paper brings together figures on recent trends in the labor market activity and wages of working-age men in the United States over the 1967-1992 period. The data, which come from Current Population Surveys, reveal several important developments. Year-long joblessness, the percentage of men failing to participate in the labor force, and the proportion who were unemployed rose throughout the period. Part-time employment as a percentage of all forms of employment was also higher at the end of the period than at the beginning, and the average hours worked by full-time workers increased slightly. Finally, median and mean wages fell. None of the trends was due to changes in the racial, educational, and age composition of the male work force; in fact, if the racial/educational/age composition had remained the same over the period, labor market activity would have declined even further.

Feasibility of Perioperative eHealth Interventions for Older Surgical Patients:A Systematic Review

OBJECTIVES: EHealth interventions are increasingly being applied in perioperative care but have not been adequately studied for older surgical patients who could potentially benefit from them. Therefore, we evaluated the feasibility of perioperative eHealth interventions for this population. DESIGN: A systematic review of prospective observational and interventional studies was conducted. Three electronic databases (PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL) were searched between January 1999 and July 2019. Study quality was assessed by Methodological Index for Non-Randomized Studies (MINORS) with and without control group. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Studies of surgical patients with an average age ≥65 years undergoing any perioperative eHealth intervention with active patient participation (with the exception of telerehabilitation following orthopedic surgery) were included. MEASURES: The main outcome measure was feasibility, defined as a patient's perceptions of usability, satisfaction, and/or acceptability of the intervention. Other outcomes included compliance and study completion rate. RESULTS: Screening of 1569 titles and abstracts yielded 7 single-center prospective studies with 223 patients (range n = 9-69 per study, average age 66-74 years) undergoing oncological, cardiovascular, or orthopedic surgery. The median MINORS scores were 13.5 of 16 for 6 studies without control group, and 14 of 24 for 1 study with a control group. Telemonitoring interventions were rated as "easy to use" by 89% to 95% of participants in 3 studies. Patients in 3 studies were satisfied with the eHealth intervention and would recommend it to others. Acceptability (derived from consent rate) ranged from 71% to 89%, compliance from 53% to 86%, and completion of study follow-up from 54% to 95%. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Results of 7 studies involving perioperative eHealth interventions suggest their feasibility and encourage further development of technologies for older surgical patients. Future feasibility studies require clear definitions of appropriate feasibility outcome measures and a comprehensive description of patient characteristics such as functional performance, level of education, and socioeconomic status

How People With Disabilities Fare When Public Policies Change--Past, Present, and Future

In this paper the authors analyze the effects of two decades of federal disability policy and macroeconomic fluctuation on the well-being of men with disabilities. Their findings indicate that both have dramatically affected the economic well-being of people with disabilities both absolutely and relative to people without disabilities. Using data from the Current Population Survey (19681988) they find that by 1987 the households of white or well-educated male heads with disabilities had fully recovered from the program cuts and recession of the early 1980s. However, to a large extent this recovery was due to additional earnings by spouses. Alternatively, the households of the doubly disadvantaged--nonwhite or poorly educated males with disabilities--did not recover from their recession depths. The authors also conclude that the new mandates on business aimed at integrating people with disabilities into society are not likely to help the doubly handicapped and that improvements in their well-being will likely depend on more generous income transfers or increased earning of those with whom they live

Implementing Wearable Sensors for Clinical Application at a Surgical Ward:Points to Consider before Starting

Incorporating technology into healthcare processes is necessary to ensure the availability of high-quality care in the future. Wearable sensors are an example of such technology that could decrease workload, enable early detection of patient deterioration, and support clinical decision making by healthcare professionals. These sensors unlock continuous monitoring of vital signs, such as heart rate, respiration rate, blood oxygen saturation, temperature, and physical activity. However, broad and successful application of wearable sensors on the surgical ward is currently lacking. This may be related to the complexity, especially when it comes to replacing manual measurements by healthcare professionals. This report provides practical guidance to support peers before starting with the clinical application of wearable sensors in the surgical ward. For this purpose, the Non-Adoption, Abandonment, Scale-up, Spread, and Sustainability (NASSS) framework of technology adoption and innovations in healthcare organizations is used, combining existing literature and our own experience in this field over the past years. Specifically, the relevant topics are discussed per domain, and key lessons are subsequently summarized.</p

Economics of education research: a review and future prospects

In this paper we offer an appraisal of the economics of education research area, charting its history as a field and discussing the ways in which economists have contributed both to education research and to education policy-making. In particular, we highlight the theoretical and methodological contributions that economists have made to the field of education during the last 50 years. Despite the success of the economics of education as a field of inquiry, we argue that some of the contributions made by economists could be limited if the economics of education is seen as quite distinct from the other disciplines working in the field of education. In these areas of common interest, economists need to work side by side with the other major disciplines in the field of education if their contribution to the field is to be maximised, particularly in terms of applying improved methodology. We conclude that the study of education acquisition and its economic and social impact in the economics of education research area is very likely to remain a fertile research ground. Acknowledgement